Power applied and up on the step as Hawaii Mars gathered speed © Rob Edgcumbe – Global Aviation Resource
The news that Coulson was donating one of their Martin Mars flying boats to the British Columbia Aviation Museum got a ton of attention in the aviation community. It has been a long time since the last operational flights of the two remaining Mars airframes and, aside from the ill-fated plan for one to head to the museum at Pensacola, nothing much happened for quite a while. Then, earlier in 2024, there came the announcement that, later in the year, Hawaii Mars would be flown to Victoria to join the museum.
The plan was for the Mars to fly from its base on Sproat Lake where it has been in storage since 2016 and to undertake a tour of various locations around Vancouver Island before touching down in Patricia Bay from where it could come ashore to take its place in the museum’s facility on Victoria International Airport. The timing of when the flight would occur was suggested but whether everything would go to schedule was anyone’s guess given that old airframes that have been in storage for a long time can be finicky.
Hawaii Mars was attracting a lot of visitors while moored up © Rob Edgcumbe – Global Aviation Resource
As the time got closer, Coulson was offering opportunities for people to tour the aircraft and even to participate in taxi trials on Sproat Lake. This suggested a level of confidence in everything working to plan. Consequently, a plan was made to head up to Sproat Lake and to aim to see the aircraft while moored up and hopefully see it take off on the penultimate flight. There was a secondary plan to be on the bay for the final touchdown. Some reconnaissance was undertaken for potential spots for this ahead of going up to Sproat Lake.
On reaching Sproat Lake and heading out on to the water, it was readily apparent that Hawaii Mars was attracting a ton of attention. The number of boats cruising around her was impressive but there were also kayakers, paddle boarders and even some swimmers from the boats all getting up close and personal with the plane. Meanwhile, the occasional boat would come out from Coulson’s dock with guests to board here and have a tour of the interior.
While Hawaii Mars was the main focus, we did also head towards the Coulson base to see Philippine Mars up on the ramp. Work was underway on her to prepare for her final flight. She will be heading to the Pima Air and Space Museum in Tucson AZ. This flight is supposedly in late2024, and she will head to a lake near Tucson via San Francisco and San Diego after which she will then be moved by road the remainder of the way. She is in the old Navy colors into which she was repainted when the Pensacola move was still on the cards.
Philippine Mars undergoing preparatory work for its future ferry to Pima © Rob Edgcumbe – Global Aviation Resource
The intel that we had received had suggested an engine start around 5:10 and airborne time of 5:30. This was clearly not going to be the case as we watched. On previous flights, they had taxied the plan well up the lake and then taking off back towards their base and so we were trying to anticipate a good location where they might taxi past us and maybe come back our way when airborne. It was important to note that a Martin Mars is not a slow thing when taxiing. As soon as one engine starts, she will be moving. With all four going, she can get quite quick. There are obviously no brakes on a flying boat, so you have to anticipate things and also make sure that you are out of the way. Previous flights and taxiing trials had attracted quite the swarm of vessels, and I think it had made things a little trickier than would be considered ideal.
A helicopter was scheduled to get some imagery of this flight and word reached us from someone on that flight of a revised start time. Things were going to be a bit tight for our boat rental but a really accommodating attitude from the guy we were dealing with meant we had a little margin. Finally, we saw the engines start cranking. Soon they were all turning and they started to taxi away from us and to the end of the lake.
We had selected a location where we thought they would have to taxi past us, and we could still get back before the patience of our guy at the boat rental ran out. We watched as they went away from us for a while and then turned back down the lake. As they came back towards us, the bow wave seemed to grow in size and then it became clear that they were gaining significant speed. The closer they came, it really looked like they were going flying.
Even at idle power, the Mars moves quite fast © Rob Edgcumbe – Global Aviation Resource
The JetRanger that was chasing them was definitely moving fast and the mighty airframe was up on the step. There is an interesting challenge that comes with panning on a moving aircraft while standing on a pitching and rolling boat and trying to keep the shutter speed low enough while not risking getting nothing at all. That’s what we had come all this way to do so now it was time to hope that you didn’t blow it and try and use all the camera has to offer to overcome failings of technique.
In the time it took me to write that last paragraph, it was all over. The glorious evening light provided perfect illumination as the water fell away from the undersides of Hawaii Mars and she was airborne. A slow climb to the southwest ensued and soon she was gone from view. Now we really did need to return the boat. However, while we needed to be back on land, we weren’t done with Hawaii Mars. She flew around the area for a while yet. On a couple of passes, there was water streaming from under the fuselage indicating that she had recently splashed down elsewhere on the lake. Meanwhile, a Skyvan was in the vicinity waiting to get some air-to-air imagery.
Soon they joined up and headed off to the coast. We had to start making tracks to get a ferry back to the mainland so, after waiting a while to see if she would return, we finally had to accept that we had got enough and to pack up. The feeling of satisfaction from everyone there was outstanding. Indeed, it was sufficient that I decided to abandon the plan to return to the island the following day for the final flight. The location was not ideal for photos in late evening and, while the Snowbirds were scheduled to formate on them, it was likely to be an absolute zoo near the bay and the long return journey that would follow did not seem too appealing.
A speedboat chases the Mars on its takeoff run © Rob Edgcumbe – Global Aviation Resource
Instead, I decided it would be better to come back to the museum once Hawaii Mars was in her final spot. After the touchdown in Patricia Bay, she was moored for a while before being pulled out of the water on her beaching gear and then loaded onto specialized moving equipment for the tow up to the airfield. This required her to move sideways since the huge wingspan would not allow her to get through the barriers between the water and the museum. This process was done overnight and, once in place, she was gradually rolled into her current location. It took a while before I was able to make the trip back to BC Aviation Museum but, once there, it was possible to see Hawaii Mars in her final (or not) location. The team has placed her outside the hangars at the museum along with some of the other firefighting aircraft. The long term plan is to have a new hangar that will include everything that is outside but, for now, they are waiting here.
Initially, there were some large tie down blocks to secure the mighty beast. With some strong local winds, they concluded that the tie downs needed to be set into the ground and that is where they now are. Even so, the large wingspan provides a lot of lift when the wind gets up and this area can certainly get some winds. As a result, they have added some spoiler blocks to the upper surfaces of the wings to prevent them from trying to pull the tie downs out. The aircraft is officially on the active part of the airfield so you need an escort to head out to see it. You can go inside the rear of the plane at the moment. The space inside is a reflection of the cargo role for which the planes were originally built. Currently, the water tanks are in the way of moving to the front of the plan for regular visitors. Once ownership of the plane officially transfers to the museum, they will do some repairs to some softer floor structures and remove some of the vent ducts to allow visitors to get to the front of the aircraft. For now, the rear is it but definitely worth checking out if you are nearby.
Secured to the ground at the BC Aviation Museum, when out of the water, Hawaii Mars looks even larger than when part of the airframe was submerged! © Rob Edgcumbe – Global Aviation Resource
It is now nearly the end of the road for the flying careers of the Martin Mars. Having had the opportunity to catch the final days of Hawaii Mars was an excellent time and she now seems to be well protected for the long term. What an impressive aircraft and something that meant so much to the people of British Columbia.
